Why Study Business Analytics?

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In an era where the data is growing extensively, business houses need to be smart in sorting out what data needs to be retained. In fact, it is the most important determinant for defining the success of an organisation. We all know that in any organisation, there is a lot of data available, but is all of it helpful?

Of course not!

“Not everything that can be counted counts, and not everything that counts can be counted.”  

This quote by Albert Einstein pretty much sums up the concept of Business Analytics.

What is Business Analytics?

Business Analytics is huge! Business Analytics helps in deciding how to use the data and what models can be used to make better business decisions. Business Analytics can be termed as ‘data science for businesses.’ While there are many models that can be used to take business decisions, business analytics assist in identification of the best possible model.

Business Analytics is a procedure/study that uses all the statistical data available in an organisation to reach a constructive conclusion. Organisations hire business analysis experts who assess the previous reports of a company to understand if they are going on the right track. The past reports help them to evaluate whether the upcoming events are in favour of the organisation or against it. In both the cases, it is beneficial for the company. If the enterprise is on the right track, they can still improve, and if they are not, then it helps them in finding solutions to rectify the same.

What is the Market Size of the Business Analytics sector?

Every day, lots and lots of data is created and consumed by individuals and organisations alike. From less than 10 zettabytes data in 2015, the data is expected to increase up to 180 zettabytes by 2025. As the data is growing, so is the investment in the various sectors like big data analytics, software, services and in data scientists sector. With so much data available almost everywhere, top companies like Amazon, IBM, Microsoft and Intel, all had to come up with a solution to use it effectively.

With a steep rise in investment in the subject, the data analytics market is believed to surpass the $200 billion mark as well. Now, this is an amazing figure!

As per a report by IDC, the worldwide data for business analytics is said to grow from $130.1 billion in 2016 to more than $203 billion in 2020 at a growth rate of 11.7%.

In fact, it is also said that by the end of 2017, the revenue growth would be doubled, when compared to the others. Basically, data would be used as a source to make money….actually excessive amount of money.

Check out these Excellent Job Prospects Business Analytics offer.

As per a report by McKinsey, there is a shortage of close to 1.5 million business analyst in the United States. The shortage of experts in not only limited to the US but is a global phenomenon. There is an excessive demand for business analytics which means that the average salaries are much higher than the other options. Due to the huge demand MNCs have, business analytics graduates work at great places. Some of the most prominent places where they work include:

  1. Large Companies or MNCs
  2. Own Startups or own companies
  3. Web-based Businesses
  4. Banks or Finance Technical Organisations
  5. Retail and Food Companies
  6. Media Companies
  7. Marketing Companies

Business Analysts are well-prepared that they would be working extensively with data and machines and develop skills which enhance their business decision making skills. After the analysts are well-versed with all the required information and gain some experience, they go ahead to lead the analytics team and the organisation as well. Yes! After gaining some substantial insight and experience, they also go on to be a part of the management team.

Demand-Supply gap in future

As per reports, most of the companies are finding it hard to find and retain suitable data analytics talent, while a few others are still unable to find the right fit. The picture seems to be very hazy as of now, I’d say! Data analytics is a big deal, but do you know why? Simply, because the amount of data that is generated now fairly exceeds the data generated previously. This also increases the need to quantify and analyse the data.

As per the current scenario, a number of companies are struggling to find the right talent for business analytics. This clearly shows that in the future, demand for business analytics talent would grow even further while the supply is still limited. Great news for people already working in the field.

How does Business Analytics help Companies AND why is it becoming popular?

Companies are increasingly using business analytics to streamline their operations and improve the day-to-day processes. However, implementing analytics in an organisation that helps in making better business decisions is not at all an easy task.

But then why is it becoming popular? I mean it is tough to implement it and has some cost involved as well, then why? Three simple and basic reasons behind this are:

  1. The ability to reduce costs in the long-run.
  2. An increase in profitability in the organisation.
  3. Sought after improvement in risk management.

Business houses and MNCs have data everywhere which makes it difficult to sort out the relevant data and filter what is really useful. They need to know which data is relevant for the industry they are in and which data isn’t. By using business analytics, the businesses are much clear about the same.

In fact, business analytics is being used in the government sector organisations as well. From Supreme Court cases to the state government, it is assisting the government to get a personalised outcome of the same.

But how is Business Analytics really helping the companies? Let’s find out.

  1. Analysing Data for Business Expansion: Besides increasing the effectiveness of an organisation, business analytics also help the business in identifying new business opportunities for expansion. For example, there are a number of customer segments that might not have been tapped and can be quite beneficial. By analysing the data, it comes to notice and the potential for expansion is explored.

Data Analytics also help businesses to identify the shift in consumer buying behaviour and, in turn, help them to get a clearer picture so that they can target the required audience.

  1. Improved customer targets: Companies use a lot of information to run predictive analysis on customer experience. By finding the right tools to understand the consumers buying patterns, companies improve their customer base on the whole. For example, as a customer if you get the product have been looking for in the first instance, why would you go to another store to find it?

Companies need to understand what their consumers are looking for and should provide them with exactly the same thing, so that they don’t venture elsewhere. But how can it be done? Implementing data analysis and understanding the past trends can help the companies to fulfil customer needs accurately. Moreover, it also helps to create a positive image of your brand in the minds of the consumers, which can also increase any company’s productivity.

  1. Internal procedures: By implementation of business analytics, the management and everyone concerned with the business get a better view of what is happening and whether it is effective or not. Moreover, whenever a problem or discrepancy occurs with the organisation, business analytic professionals are answerable about it. Questions like- Why did the problem occur?, What will happen in future?, How it can be rectified?, etc. have to be answered by the

Kind of Courses and Training to shape up guys

With the growing popularity of Business Analytics, the demand for trained professionals is also going up. The scarcity of trained analytics professionals can be reduced by imparting training on various analytical and statistical tools concerned with the field. To supplement for the growing demand and reduce the demand and supply gap, business analytics training is of utmost importance.

  1. MBA in Business Analytics-The MBA in Business ANalytics programme has been specifically designed for providing students relevant business analytics related knowledge. With knowledge on softwares ranging from SPSS to descriptive analytics and big data, an MBA in Business Analytics is for the ones who are sure of a career in this field.
  2. Post Graduate Programme in Business Analytics- The programme is designed to ensure that students get a thorough knowledge of business analytics in a time period of 11 months. The course has been designed to provide students with a comprehensive understanding of the course including technology, data and day to day business decisions.
  3. Advanced Analytics for Management– All the experienced professionals can go for this course to gain a more advanced outlook on the same. The teaching methodology for this programme involves classroom training, group discussion and hands on experience on advanced analytics.

Alternatively, students can go for a graduation degree like BBA in finance and do a course in analytics which would be helpful for the students. After that, they can go for an advanced degree in business analytics. It totally depends on the student and how focussed he/she is.

There is one thing we must always be informed about- It is not the amount of data that makes a difference but it is the ability to do something with it that actually makes a difference.  With business analytics, businesses are sure that all the data is not going down the drain and is being used for something productive.

Author Bio:  Miss Sanya Sajjanhar is an MBA graduate and is designated as an academic writer at Sharda University. The author has keen interest in writing articles pertaining to Business Analytics and Big Data.

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Kalyan Banga226 Posts

I am Kalyan Banga, a Post Graduate in Business Analytics from Indian Institute of Management (IIM) Calcutta, a premier management institute, ranked best B-School in Asia in FT Masters management global rankings. I have spent 14 years in field of Research & Analytics.

8 Comments

  • Why You Should Really Be Using CRM Analytics - Fusion Analytics World Reply

    July 11, 2017 at 6:18 am

    […] (CRM) involves a significant investment of time and money. CRM is the ideal starting point for analytics because it collects the data that leads to highlighting the aggregate picture of organizational […]

     
  • Sandeep Reply

    July 22, 2017 at 5:59 pm

    Hi Kalyan,
    I am Sandeep. I have over 7 years of experience in IT primarily working on Data warehousing related technologies. I would like to enroll for Executive Program in Business Analytics course from IIM-C through Hughes education. Please suggest if it is a wise choice. And your experience on how the course helped you with progressing in your career.

     
    • Kalyan Banga Reply

      July 23, 2017 at 1:21 am

      Hi Sandeep, Nice to e-meet you.It’s a good course with a good coverage of topics, detailed classes, good faculty etc. If you are looking to gain knowledge, i would suggest go for it. But if you are looking at placement or practical knowledge/hands-on tool experience then this course is not right for you. You can look at course from ISB, Great Lakes etc. So it actually depends on what outcome you are looking at. Thank you!

       
  • Bay Reply

    August 24, 2017 at 10:50 am

    Hi Kalyan,

    I am a chartered Accountant and a CFA. I would like to know how beneficial would a MS in Business Analytics course be for my career growth. Would my finance knowledge be beneficial in this field?

     
    • Kalyan Banga Reply

      August 24, 2017 at 12:22 pm

      Hi Bay,

      Thank you for your question. Since you are into finance stream and financial analytics is great demand, you have a great opportunity. a CA being exposed to variety of business, data, knowledge would be considered the perfect guy to provide solution to a company to implement big data. Specially in audit analytics there is huge scope for you as very few CAs are in this field. It’s highly paid field. Hope it helps :)

       
  • Natural Language Generation: A Revolution in Business Insight - Fusion Analytics World Reply

    January 14, 2018 at 2:25 pm

    […] this point in the history of Data Management the actual analytics of such vast quantities of data is still quite immature. The Business Intelligence (BI) industry […]

     
  • S Neeharika Reply

    December 3, 2018 at 6:08 am

    Hi kalyan,
    I am currently work in business analytics field. having 3 years of experience in industry. business analyst training. but now want to work with business intelligence project . i want to know from you that this business analyst knowledge is helpful me for this new project related to business intelligence.

     
  • Tshering Penjor Reply

    February 18, 2020 at 5:36 am

    i am finance personnel, working in the manufacturing company. i would like to start Business Analytics. can you help me

     

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